Hip hop veteran Bojana Petrović, better known as Labia, has been active on the Montenegrin music scene for many years, and recently the intensity of releasing new songs has significantly increased. After a kind of hip hop female anthem “ANEMOI” by DJ Mono, on which she guested with colleagues Marija Božović, Snežana Nikčević (Apro), Đulija Perišić (Jutro) and Sara Kurgaš (Kurgashian), in the past two years she has also released “Metak” (feat. Marko Janjušević Janjo), “Kontrabanda”, “Klon” (ft Maria B), “Nema 'leba od repa” (ft Apro), “Šporko vrijeme” (ft Dedduh)...
That's why it wasn't particularly surprising that she ended up on the compilation "Domestic Work 2", in which Marko Ćaćić and Todor Tadić from Knowhere2Run gathered 30 rappers from the Montenegrin hip hop scene.
For the purposes of this compilation, Labia recorded a song called "Lepa Brena", and in addition to it, in an interview with "Vijesti" she also talked about collaboration with her colleagues, as well as her plans when it comes to her musical career in the future, and took the opportunity to announce another collaboration.
At the beginning of the interview, Petrović described the process of creating the lyrics for her song "Lepa Brena", but also revealed why it is named after the once most popular Yugoslav singer.
"'Lepa Brena' simply rhymed with the theme itself, I have nothing against the singer herself, of course, nor was she the inspiration in herself, but through the lyrics I wanted to allude to musical styles that have been popular in our country for many years and whose framework is difficult to break out of. How much of it is repeated," the rapper said.
"I usually write texts quite quickly, although this is an old topic that I absolutely always find inspiration for," she continues.
In an earlier interview with "Vijesti", Tadić and Ćaćić explained that in the process of recording the compilation, they offer everyone several matrices, and Petrović further explains the creative process.
"I like to experiment a bit with styles in hip hop and I usually draw a parallel between boom bap and grime. And at that moment, right when Todor and Marko contacted me, I was working with Bustina Džiber on the single 'Rafal', which is a grime version. And then I said to them - 'let's do some grime,' to which they generously offered three beats and I immediately chose the first one. So it was a pretty quick process as far as the song itself is concerned," the rapper recalls.
When asked how important the "Domestic Work" compilation is for the Montenegrin hip hop scene, especially younger artists, but also the audience, Labia says that he is already looking forward to the next one.
"This cooperation is very important for the entire hip hop community. I'm looking forward to the next one, and it's a kind of media where rappers from Montenegro can show their skills and styles, and therefore the number of tracks will increase quantitatively. And then at some point, or rather, a period, it will be possible to single out collected works, so to speak... or rather, quality will emerge from all of this," believes Petrović.
Labia is not the only lady on this compilation, where there is also room for Apro, Kurgashian and Jutro, and the rapper explains that the relationship among Montenegrin female rappers is full of support.
"We all know each other and follow each other, hang out and support each other... There aren't many of us (laughs), but it's enviable," the interviewee of "Vijesti" pointed out, and then she singled out the songs of her colleagues.
"Of course, I have something in common with Apro, 'Neba 'leba od repa'. I think we explained some things there. I wouldn't single out a track for Kurgash, but I would mention that she is the first female rapper in Montenegro to release an album - LP called 'Mudra' and that is something that is absolutely written into the history of a music scene. And Jutro has that sweet little voice, but she also burns it nicely in the lyrics, so I like that contrast and I would single out the song 'Ođe ja čuvam' from her," Petrović lists.
And when it comes to her songs, the audience can expect new songs in the coming period, while she is currently dedicated to working with the band.
"It can be expected... and if it's half as creative a year as the previous one - it'll be good. I'm currently working with a band in Kotor called the Vocal-Instrumental Band 'Gambor' and it will be some kind of hip hop/HC fusion, meaning a slightly harder sound with a bass guitar, an electric guitar, drums and two MCs," she announces.
However, the rapper from Kotor is no stranger to collaborating with colleagues, considering that she has recorded songs with Nikola Rajović (DJ Mono), Dejan Dedović (Dedduh) and Marija Božović, and in an interview with "Vijesti" she admits that she loves working on joint songs.
"I really love collaborations, because everyone adds their own spice to it. Over time, it's easy to fall into some kind of cliché or repetition, I try to avoid that, because I consider it my creative freedom, to change it up a bit. With Marija it can be jazz or R'n'B, with Dedo it's always good old boom bap, but it's all part of a rap story," concludes Labia, who uses the opportunity to announce another collaboration.
"I could easily announce a track with Dedo right now, there will also be another compilation coming this time from Nikšić from the 'Chicken Coop' studio, so stay tuned... There will be everything nice...", Petrović hinted.
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